Mombasa, Jan 29 The recurrence of infectious diseases such as Ebola, monkeypox and Marburg in Africa calls for enhancing the resilience of the continent's public health systems through sustainable funding, technology adoption, improved surveillance and community engagement.
Africa remains vulnerable to disease outbreaks that are being fueled by climate change, pollution, unregulated human mobility across borders and limited access to diagnostics and essential medicine, said the officials and experts attending the East Africa Regional Global Health Security Summit 2025, officials said at a forum in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa.
The summit that runs from January 28-30 was convened by Kenya's Ministry of Health and partners and aims to chart a new pathway for enhancing preparedness and response to pandemics in the region.
In addition, delegates from governments, academia, civil society, donors, industry and regional blocs attending the three-day forum will discuss novel ways to boost biosecurity, advance health equity, and ramp up the adoption of technologies and innovations in the health sector.
Kenyan President William Ruto in his opening remarks said that African nations have a collective duty to revamp their health systems and ensure they are capable of responding to outbreaks that are transboundary.
"The threats posed by infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate change and other health challenges require a united and proactive approach," Ruto said in a speech read on his behalf by Deborah Mlongo Barasa, Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Health.
Ruto called for investments in research and local manufacturing of testing kits and vaccines while leveraging technology, partnerships and community outreach to boost health security on the continent, Xinhua news agency reported.
The inaugural East Africa Region Global Health Security Summit 2025 runs under the theme of 'Securing Health and Prosperity, One Community at a Time', underscoring the urgency to improve the continent's ability to detect, respond and manage health emergencies.
Abdourahmane Diallo, the World Health Organization representative in Kenya, said that robust community-based surveillance combined with partnerships, innovations and forward-looking policies are pivotal to enhancing Africa's public health security.
Diallo stressed that mobilising resources from the domestic private sector is key to tackling funding gaps in the continent's health sector, occasioned by shrinking external support.
Raji Tajudeen, Acting Deputy Director-General at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, stressed that political goodwill, innovative financing, reskilling the health workforce and streamlining the supply chains for essential commodities will ensure the continent's health systems are responsive to emerging threats.
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